So far there have been quite a few claims that the new Microsoft Xbox that will likely be shown at this year's E3 will not play used games, and will require an internet connection at all times in order to enforce that. Now all of these claims have come from "multiple unnamed sources" meaning they are far from validated, but so far Microsoft has done nothing to dispel these 'rumors'.

I love my 360. Play it every day, usually. But this is a step so far in the wrong direction it's damn disconcerting, and so far the overwhelming public sentement seems to be leaning toward dismal opening sales for the system.

So here's my beef: what kind (if any) sense would it make for Microsoft to do this, if indeed they are planning on it? I'm just trying to understand why someone would make this decision and what the likelihood of them following through with it would be if people threaten to boycott (which usually never works, as gamers can be a fickle bunch). I would say only about 20 percent of my games were pre-owned, but a company dictating that I CANNOT play used games really gets my hackles up. I don't even want to think about the possibility of rising prices on games if this did go through.

tl;dr Would Microsoft dare to make the Xbox 720 unable to play used games? What would the gaming community's response be?

Honestly, I don't know why they'd do this, or even what sort of malformed logic would be required to make this decision.
However, I do know that it would definitely hurt companies that do deal with selling used games (Gamestamp), and they would have to stop with that part of their business dealings.

The corporate greed that has infected video games stinks, it stinks real bad. I guess the big game companies weren't content with shitting all over PC gamers with draconian DRM, now they're going to wage a war on console gamers. I hope this is only a rumor and my sense of outrage is misplaced.

Honestly, I see all this rumor mongering from unnamed sources just a typical pathetic ploy from so-called videogame "journalists" to agitate the gullible and drive page views.

Are things like no used games possible? Of course. It is Microsoft after all, the company behind Vista and Windows 8, but let's look at the reality.

1) It's a much tougher market now than it was even 8 years ago when the 360 launched. 99 cent gaming and free gaming are taking a cut and raising expectations. Tablets and phones are drastically changing gaming dynamics for a whole new generation of gamers to boot.

2) Then there's newcomers with set-top boxes like the $99 OUYA and Valve. Will either of them be in the business 5-7 years from now? Who knows? But you can bet they're both gonna make a splash. And the PC market has resurrected to boot.

3) Gamestop. The industry says they hate them. But who pre-orders more games at full-retail value? Are you a sucker if you shop there? Usually. Especially if you consistently buy titles at $60, that will be $40 or less, 2 months later, but ultimately, the income they bring in, and the force they are for full-retail value shouldn't be denied. Killing the used game business would likely kill Gamestop, and that would suffocate the $60 console title.

4) Me, you, and everyone else with half a brain. If one console can play used titles, and another one of comparative specs can't, which one is gonna get most of your money and time? Especially if they share mostly the same catalog of titles. Sure there's always die-hards, fanboys, and suckers, but unless it's universal, it will be a significant sticking point.

5) Exclusives. They get rarer every year, and are less of a selling point. If Microsoft was Nintendo, they'd have a better shot of embracing the strategy of selling a console based on exclusives, but even Nintendo has somewhat abandoned that notion.

If Microsoft does move forward with this, expect a subtle, yet powerful and aggressive marketing campaign. Dozens of blogs and "journalists" will suddenly proclaim how this is a good thing, and will make gaming even better. And fanboys arguing their exact talking points will flood every comments section.

If there's one thing I've noticed over the last decade, there's a significant and vocal quadrant of the gaming population that is fucking brainless, yet think they're brilliant. Sheep and tools.

its sad that gamers boycotting games wouldn't do much. but I agree that this is ridiculous. they did this with the pspgo , they thought that making it download only would help them somehow. but almost ironically, putting 16gb of space on the pspgo made it a joy for PSP hacking, since its a nice peice of hardware, with all sorts of space to stash your pirated games . on top of the fact that law abiding gamers wouldn't touch it because of its lack of und drive. in not so short, it seriously crippled its own sales. I think the same will happen to the 720, and Microsoft will hopefully realize how terrible of an idea it is.

Sounds like a bad rumor to me, even MS isn't that dumb. Unless Sony is colluding with them on this and the PS4 has the same restrictions, which is perfectly within the realm of possibility given Sony's track record with this sort of thing...I'm still leaning towards merely a rumor though

It's terrible for consumers but makes perfect sense for MS and Sony. What's not to get? Gamestop is a multi-billion dollar company primarily supported by used games sales. When the PSPGo came out, Gamestop was up in arms and riling the public against it.

You can bet your patoot the business executives want this implemented. They want that virtual system where you trade access to games for a few bucks of online credit. I wouldn't care because I buy two games a year anymore, but I understand how it sets off a lot people.